Federer reaches Gerry Weber finals

HALLE, Germany -- Roger Federer reached the Gerry Weber Open final on Saturday without dropping his serve in any match after a 6-1, 6-4 win against Germany's Nicolas Kiefer.

Federer pushed his record winning streak on grass to 58 matches at the Wimbledon warmup, which the top-ranked Swiss has claimed four times. Each time, he has gone on to win the grand slam tournament.

"Nobody has won the grand slam from the Gerry Weber Open before me," Federer said. "I hope I can do it again. The win streak is incredible."

In Sunday's final, Federer will face Philipp Kohlschreiber, who knocked seventh-ranked James Blake of the United States out of the tournament for the second straight year, 6-3, 7-5.

Blake's 33 aces heading into the match led the field, but the unseeded German broke his serve three times. The American's forehand sailed wide to end the match in 72 minutes.

"Of course I'm frustrated, but I will just have to get over it by Wimbledon," Blake said. "I got four matches in, it's a good start to the grass court season."

Federer has served 39 times without a break at the tournament, as he extended his undefeated run at Halle to 24 wins. The event is his first this season on grass.

"The rhythm is coming along nicely for me, I'm moving well," said Federer, adding that Wimbledon was on his mind. "All in all, I played a great match today, especially the first set."

Kiefer, who has fallen to No. 38 after a wrist injury, was the last player to beat Federer in Halle -- back in 2002 in the semifinals. The next year Federer launched his grass streak at Halle, which includes five Wimbledon titles.

Federer broke the serve of Kiefer -- a 1999 winner and twice a losing finalist here -- in the first game, ending a trade of volleys by lashing one into the open court. Federer raced through the set in 22 minutes.

"At times we had some unbelievable rallies," Kiefer said. "I had some chances, but if you don't use them against the No. 1, 2 or 3, you get penalized."

Federer came into Halle after Rafael Nadal routed him in the French Open on Sunday, his worst loss to his rival.

The Spaniard's performance at Roland Garros made some think he may be ready to beat Federer at Wimbledon after losing the final in the last two years to the Swiss. Nadal beat four-time champion Andy Roddick 7-5, 6-4 Saturday to reach the final at the Queen's Club for the first time.

"I already know he can play on grass," Federer said. "Queen's is not Wimbledon, Halle is not Wimbledon."

At the Gerry Weber Open, none of Federer's four matches lasted much longer than the 65 minutes he spent on court Saturday.